


That one where Lindsey is a witch

by Slythendor



Series: Daemon!AU [2]
Category: His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman, My Chemical Romance
Genre: Daemons, F/M, Fluff, Magic, Witches, parenting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-01
Updated: 2012-06-01
Packaged: 2017-11-06 13:45:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/419573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slythendor/pseuds/Slythendor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her real name is Lyrastella Pekkala.</p>
            </blockquote>





	That one where Lindsey is a witch

**Author's Note:**

> Second part of my daemon au. Please leave comments, and if you liked, kudos!

Lindsey Way is a witch.

                No, not that kind-although she can be, when the situation calls for it. When someone’s insulted her band, her friends, her husband, or, god forbid, her _child_. That’s when the sweet smile and caring disposition disappears, and she attacks with flashing brown eyes. But that’s also when she feels the surge of power underneath her fingertips, the electricity that flows between her veins.  It’s been a while since she’s cut lose, so it’s really built up.

                Lindsey rarely uses magic anymore-she tries to live as normally as possible, although she loves the ability to fix a broken vase with a quick word. But the magic that’s trained into her, the attack magic, indented to destroy and crush and hurt, that’s been locked away.

                Until it’s forced out of her by the road, the snow, and a moment of desperation.

                Lindsey pretends to agree with Gerard about the ridiculous temperature, but in reality, she doesn’t feel a thing. She was born in the frozen North, were she’s walked in bare feet across ice, the cold doesn’t bother the witch’s blood that runs through her veins. Looking at Bandit, Lindsey can tell that she’s not cold, either.  The little nagging voice in the back of Lindsey’s mind remind her that Bandit is a witch as well, and how is she supposed to explain to her husband why their three-year old is talking too trees. Lindsey tells it to shut up.

                Arcadia shivers, and Gerard gently scratches her behind the ears.  “How far is this store?” He says, and Lindsey tries not to giggle at his three year old whine.

                “One more block, you big wimp.” She teases, watches Chaillion as he flies above her, a little farther away than most humans would be able to stand, yet close enough as not to attract suspicion. “It’s not my fault there were no close parking spaces.”

                “Yeah, but does B needs shoes now?” Gerard whines again, pulling Bandit closer as she strays to far down the sidewalk. Rustiel is currently a squirrel perched around Bandit’s shoulders, looking like a glowing ember next to the monochrome snows and dirty ice. Lindsey knows, however, that he’ll settle as a bird. Bandit’s a witch, he has to.

                “Honey, your daughter has holes in her boots.” Lindsey says. “Now, maybe this wouldn’t have happened if we didn’t let her wear snow boots in the summer-“

                “You didn’t have a problem with it either-“

                “-but we did, so here we are.”

                Gerard huffs in defeat, and Lindsey laughs and loops her arm in his, cherry red hair tickling her face. “You know, maybe if someone stopped complaining we can stop at the comic store on the way back….”

                The way Gerard’s face lights up is so juvenile and adorable, Lindsey can’t help but to press a kiss on his check. Bandit happily tottles a tiny bit ahead, confident enough on her own legs to go without a holding hand, unstable enough that her parents hover at three inches to be safe. Gerard takes Bandit’s hand as they cross the street, and Lindsey can’t help but feel so content, so at ease, that it must be a trick.

                Arcadia’s yelp is the first thing that tips them off.  Chaillion has seen it from above, and Lindsey can feel his fear and shock, but she doesn’t know _why_. That’s when she sees the car, skidding out of control on the side of the road, headed straight for her family.

                Ten years of living with the witches has ensured that Lindsey’s instincts remain sharp, even without practice. She doesn’t even think, she just summons her magic and  feels it grow within her, defending her family with the strength of a queen’s daughter.

                The car gets five feet away from the Ways when Lindsey’s magic hits it, forcing the car away onto the other side of the road. A dent the size of a dinner table in embedded into the car, the metal crumbled and weak.

                The bystanders around then rush toward them, to concerned about the family’s safety to fully process what they have seen. Inside the car, the driver forces the crumbled door open, not even looking at his car has he rushes towards the Ways and asks them if they’re alright.

                Gerard says nothing, simply stares at Lindsey with wide eyes. He’s seen.

0.0

                “Bandit, why don’t you go play in your room?” Gerard suggests, setting down his daughter, who’s balancing a shoe box in one hand and a crumbly cookie in another.  “Mommy and I have to talk about grown up stuff.”

                “Ima grown up!”

                “Yeah, but this is boring stuff.” Gerard retorts, and then picks Bandit up and playfully carries her to her room. Lindsey smiles, watching them go, then collapses on the couch, fists clenched tightly. Chaillion comes to her shoulder, rubbing against Lindsey’s neck.

                She trusts Gerard with her life, but she doesn’t trust him to tell him this-doesn’t trust him not to freak out, to look at her differently, like she’s a freak. Witches don’t normally form long-term relationships with men, they’re always fleeting. Oh, God, what if he thinks she’s just using him-

                “Lindsey.” Gerard looks uncomfortable as he leans against the doorway, Arcadia nervously wagging her tail at his feet. “I, um…we need to talk.”

                Lindsey swallows. “About what?”

                “Today, at the accident.” Gerard sits down at the chair exactly across from her, and Lindsey feels the desire to rush towards him and beg for forgiveness. “That car was headed straight at us.”

                “Good thing it stopped then-“

                “You _did_ something, Lyn.” Gerard interjects. “I don’t know what-but-you did something and all of a sudden that car was going away from us, and it was headed _right at us_ -“

                “There was a fucking crater in the car!” Arcadia snaps. “Tell me that’s natural!”

                “I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Lindsey snaps back, fear making her strike out. “Gerard, honey, just drop it-“

                “Lindsey, you did something-“

                “I’m a witch!”

                Both Gerard and Lindsey are silent after this confession, staring at each other with huge eyes. Lindsey quickly looks away. “I’m a witch, I used magic to stop the car.” Gerard leans back against the couch, mouth open, staring off into space. Arcadia looks at Chaillion in a blank stare, causing him to ruffle his feathers.

                “…I thought that witches lived up North.” Gerard finally says, not looking at Lindsey. _Oh God, he’s mad, this hurts, I’m sorry-_

                “I used to.” Lindsey says, looking down at the floor, where one of Bandit’s books is lying. She thinks about the life the left behind, and the one she has right now, and how they’re crashing together. “ First ten years of my life, I lived in the North. My mother she-it’s common for witches to fall in love with human men. If they have a child, and it’s female, it’s a witch. If’s it’s a boy, it’s human.”

                She looks at Gerard closely, trying to see if he will make the connection, yet his expression remains unreadable. “Traditionally the guy would take a human child, the witch would take her daughter. But my dad wanted to take care of me. He wanted to be a part of my life. My mother loved him, but she couldn’t allow him within the clan. Firstly it’s no place for a man, and secondly…human’s lives are so short compared to witches. I think Mother was trying to distance herself from him, protecting herself.”

                Lindsey can swear that Gerard’s paled a good deal, yet she soldiers on. “So they came to an agreement. I would live in the clan in the winter months, from September until February. The rest of the time, I’d live with my Dad. When I turned eighteen, I could go wherever I wanted.” She smiled a dry, cold smile. “I don’t think it surprised my mom when I left the clan.”

                “I’ve met your mom, Lyn.” Gerard murmurs, soft and barely audible. “She’s no witch.”

                “My Dad remarried when I was two.” Lindsey replies. “After I left the clan, I recognized her has my real Mom.”

                Silence reigns, and Lindsey shifts in her seat, wishing that Gerard would just say _something_ , and then he speaks. “Don’t witches have different names?”

                “They do.” Lindsey says, and thinks of how she’s betrayed him, and closes her eyes to speak. “My given name was Lyrastella Pekkala.”

                Arcadia growls in shock, and Chaillion filches away, as if the fox has bit him. The golden daemon paces the ground, her agitation contrasting with Gerard’s stillness. Lindsey is struck dumb, yet Chaillion has found his tongue. “We’re sorry.” He blurts out. “We wanted to tell you, but we thought that you would think that we’re weird, and using you, and we’re not, we swear, we just didn’t want you to get freaked out-“

                “Chaillion, shut up.” Arcadia growls, and the bird immediately stops talking. Lindsey distractedly strokes Chaillion’s feathers, trying to give comfort that she doesn’t have. Arcadia nudges Gerard’s knee, desperate to know what’s going on in her human’s mind.

                Gerard looks and Lindsey, and simply stares at her for along moment. Finally, his face breaks into a huge pout. “That is SO not fair!”

                Let it state for the record that Lindsey is normally more articulate than this “What?” She manages to squeak out.

                “You mean all those times where I come home and the house is like, sparkling clean, and then you bitch at me for not picking up after myself, you’re really using magic? Or how your dinners always taste so much better than mine? I can’t compete with Hermione Granger!”

                Arcadia barks out a laugh, growing at ease alongside her human. Chaillion are Lindsey, however, are completely and utterly baffled. “You’re….not mad?” Chaillion meekly asks.

                “Of course not! This is fucking awesome!” Gerard all but shouts, and for a brief, idiotic moment Lindsey thinks to shush him, because her daughter hears more than enough language already. “My wife is a witch!”

                He then leans forward and pulls Lindsey into a hug at the same time that Arcadia gives Chaillion a big wet lick. Gerard starts murmuring things about how Lindsey is “awesome, just to awesome, you are amazing” and kissing her on her head. Lindsey’s never been one for crying, so in the mist of all this emotion, she goes for its opposite-bursting out into hysterical laughter.

                “I’d thought you’d be mad.” Lindsey giggles.

                “Are you kidding me? This is awesome!” Gerard gasps out, grinning hugely like Lindsey’s just told him that she’s pregnant, again. “But…” A thought occurs to him, and he pulls away from Lindsey. Lindsey’s only momentarily confused before he asks. “You said that witches lived for a long time, and that human lives seem so short to them.” He shifts his feet, suddenly looking sad and loney. “So are you going to live longer than I am?”

                Lindsey breaths a sign of relief, because she can answer this question, and it’s the right answer. “Normally, yeah. Yeah I would.” She smiles a little bit. “When I left the clan, I gave up some of my abilities as a witch. Chaillion can’t travel as far as other witches from me, I can’t fly on the cloud pine branches and…I age like a normal human.”

                Gerard grins again, happy, and so relived. “Good, that’s um-good.” He bites his thumb, the way that he does when he’s nervous, and shift from side to side. “So, um, would it be rude if I-I mean, I don’t’ know how much energy you already used today-but could I-maybe-see a little magic?”

                Chaillion squawks out a laugh. “You can just ask.” Lindsey says, and she lights her hand on fire.

                Gerard swears and jumps back, Arcadia scuttling away from him. It’s hard for Lindsey to laugh at to sustain the fire at the same time, so she looks are the ground.  Gerard steps a little closer, eyes wide. “That is-that’s-“

                “Way cool.” Arcadia finishes for him.

                Lindsey grins. “You are such a geek.” She teases, knowing that she wouldn’t have it any other way. “You can touch it, if you like.” She suggests. “The fire won’t hurt you.”

                Gerard’s eyes widen even more, and he tentatively reaches his hand out, at first just brushing the flames, then sticking his hand in them. “That’s so weird.” He whispered. “But way cool. Not bad weird. Good weird. Like being able to shape shift, not turning into goo-“

                “Oh my god, shut up.” Lindsey hisses, and kisses him. The fire burns out and sizzles, but neither Lindsey nor Gerard seems to care.

                They only break away when the sound of little feet approach them. “Mommy, look what I do!” Bandit declares, and turns invisible.

                Gerard turns white again. “You said that the female child of a witch and a human is also a witch.”

                “Yeah.” Lindsey mutters. “Yeah, I did.”


End file.
